The Energon Universe (EU) is an ongoing American comic book franchise and shared

fictional universe A fictional universe, or fictional world, is a self-consistent setting with events, and often other elements, that differ from the real world. It may also be called an imagined, constructed, or fictional realm (or world). Fictional universes ma ...

created and overseen by

Robert Kirkman Robert Kirkman (; born November 30, 1978)Löchel, Ingo"The Walking Dead: Die Comic-Serie – Robert Kirkman" Zauberspiegel. Retrieved February 17, 2013. is an American comic book writer, screenwriter and television producer. He is best known ...

, and published by

Skybound Entertainment Skybound Entertainment is an American multiplatform entertainment company founded by Robert Kirkman and David Alpert. History Skybound Entertainment is the company behind the long-running comic, '' The Walking Dead'', created by Robert Kirkman ...

, an imprint of

Image Comics Image Comics is an American comic book publisher and is the third largest comic book and graphic novel publisher in the industry in both unit and market share. It was founded in 1992 by several high-profile illustrators as a venue for creator-o ...

, in collaboration with

Hasbro Hasbro, Inc. (; a syllabic abbreviation of its original name, Hassenfeld Brothers) is an American multinational conglomerate holding company incorporated and headquartered in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. Hasbro owns the trademarks and products of K ...

. Featuring concepts and characters from ''

Transformers ''Transformers'' is a media franchise produced by American toy company Hasbro and Japanese toy company Tomy, Takara Tomy. It primarily follows the Autobots and the Decepticons, two alien robot factions at war that can transform into other forms ...

'' and ''

G.I. Joe ''G.I. Joe'' is an American media franchise and a line of action figures owned and produced by the toy company Hasbro. The initial product offering represented four of the branches of the U.S. armed forces with the Action Soldier ( U.S. Army), ...

'', alongside original

intellectual properties Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, cop ...

, the franchise is the successor of the

Hasbro Comic Book Universe The Hasbro Comic Book Universe (HCBU) is an American comic book franchise and shared universe created and published by IDW Publishing, based on various properties of the toy company Hasbro. Publication history Following the bankruptcy of Dreamwa ...

IDW Publishing IDW Publishing is an American publisher of comic books, graphic novels, art books, and comic strip collections. It was founded in 1999 as the publishing division of Idea and Design Works, LLC (IDW), itself formed in 1999, and is regularly re ...

(2005–2018).

Publication history

Background

Before

lost the licenses to produce ''

'' and ''

'' comics at the end of 2022, in December 2021, it was reported that

, an imprint of

, was in talks with

to acquire those licenses. Skybound would officially announce it in June 2023.

Development

The Energon Universe debuted on June 14, 2023, with the original series ''

Void Rivals ''Void Rivals'' is an American comic book ongoing series written by Robert Kirkman, drawn by Lorenzo De Felici, colored by Matheus Lopes and Patricio Delpeche, and published by Skybound Entertainment, an imprint of Image Comics. It is the first ...

'', written by

, drawn by Lorenzo De Felici and colored by Matheus Lopes. Kirkman and De Felici had previously worked together in another comic titled '' Oblivion Song''. Kirkman said, "It’s a tremendous honor to be able to reintroduce this world to a new audience under the Skybound banner. I’ve loved these characters for most of my life and to have the opportunity to add to the already rich tapestry Hasbro has built with the all-new ''Void Rivals'' is an unbelievable opportunity. If you look at everything done with ''Transformers'' and ''G.I. Joe'', you can see the inkling of a vast universe with tremendous potential for crossovers and interaction that will enhance the fan experience while staying true to the individual identities of both concepts. I look forward to exploring that potential for years to come." Michael Kelly, who was Vice President of Global Publishing on Hasbro until December 2023, added, “When we first discussed plan for the surprise reveal in ''Void Rivals'' #1, I never expected it would be a secret we could keep for over a year. Now that it is finally here, we are all excited to finally be able to talk about all the amazing stories to come from our great new partners at Skybound.” ''Void Rivals'' is followed by a ''

'' ongoing series and four ''

'' limited series. Kirkman also brought up the possibility of adding other action brands from Hasbro in the future, and confirmed that they will not have more than four series running at once. In May 2024, Skybound announced four connecting variant covers to celebrate the Energon Universe's first anniversary for June 2024. The covers are drawn by Jason Howard and colored by Annalisa Leoni. In June 2024, Skybound officially announced the new ''G.I. Joe'' ongoing series that follows its four previous prequels.

Distribution and localization

Setting

The Energon Universe is set in the

present The present (or here'' and ''now) is the time that is associated with the events perceived directly and in the first time, not as a recollection (perceived more than once) or a speculation (predicted, hypothesis, uncertain). It is a period of ...

(

modern era The term modern period or modern era (sometimes also called modern history or modern times) is the period of history that succeeds the Middle Ages (which ended approximately 1500 AD). This terminology is a historical periodization that is appli ...

); the franchise name makes reference to the substance that Transformers need to survive. In the Sacred Ring, there is a war between Agorrians and Zertonians. When two rivals named Darak and Solila crash on a mysterious planetoid, they must work together in order to survive. In the process, they learn a secret that will change everything they believed about their war. Meanwhile, the other war between

Autobot The Autobots are the main protagonists in the fictional continuities of the Transformers multimedia franchise, and are depicted in a collection of various toys, cartoons, films, graphic novels, and paperback books first introduced in 1984. Th ...

s and

Decepticon The Decepticons are the main antagonists in the fictional continuities of the '' Transformers'' multimedia franchise. They are depicted as a faction of sentient robotic lifeforms led by Megatron, identified by a purple face-like insignia. Ca ...

s on Cybertron expands to

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surf ...

, leading to the foundation of

and Cobra in response. A chain of events will cause all those factions to fight against each other, changing the fate of humanity (and the universe) forever.

List of publications

Ongoing series

Limited series

Special

Release order

Year one

Year two

Reception

Critical response

The EU comics have been receiving general positive reviews for their narrative, tone and complex storylines, with critics praising ''Void Rivals'' for the surprising guest appearance of several ''Transformers'' and ''G.I. Joe'' characters in each issue.

Sales

Until March 2024, the franchise sold over one million copies of ''Void Rivals'', ''Transformers'', ''Duke'' and ''Cobra Commander'' in total. Following their highly positive critics, reprints have been made. In June 2024, ''Transformers'' #10, ''Scarlett'' #2, ''Destro'' #2 and ''Void Rivals'' #11 were part of Image's Top 10 Comics in Direct Market.

Accolades

Collected editions

References

Notes

Footnotes

{{Hasbro Comics based on Hasbro toys Continuity (fiction) Fictional universes G.I. Joe comics Hasbro Hasbro franchises Military comics Science fantasy comics Science fiction comics Skybound Entertainment titles Superhero comics Transformers comics